TechEd U.S. Just Got Bigger
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Following the lead of TechEd Barcelona, TechEd U.S. 2008 will also be expanded into a “split event”. For the first time, TechEd U.S. is evolving from a one week conference to two separate back-to-back conferences: TechEd U.S. 2008 Developers, June 3-6, and TechEd U.S. 2008 IT Professionals, June 10-13, in Orlando, FL. Each event is priced separately, but there will be special package pricing for those that want to attend both events.
The format is intended to provide the same experience but with expanded learning opportunities. There is a new frequently asked questions document to help explain how this is going to work.
Each event will be 4 days, focusing on technical knowledge sharing, product evaluation and community. TechEd Developers will be focused on Developers and Designers; TechEd IT Professionals will be focused on IT Professionals. Both events will include: Pre-Conference Seminars, Keynote, Breakout Sessions, Interactive Theater Sessions, Hands-On Labs, Instructor-Led Labs, Community Programs, Partner Expo Hall, Microsoft Technical Learning Center, Attendee Party and various networking opportunities.
The TechEd U.S. 2008 Developers conference will include an infrastructure track for developers that will cover Windows Server, System Center, Windows Vista, Office System, PerformancePoint Server, SharePoint Services, Office Communications Server, Exchange Server, and more. For TechEd IT Professionals there will be a track that features the latest in the developer technologies, languages, practices, and platforms. Attendees from both events will get the complete set of DVD’s with all of the TechEd content at no additional cost.
There will be dedicated tracks of sessions at both events to provide cross-content. The split event model will also provide the opportunity to host more community related activities over the weekend between the events.
It’s going to be very interesting to see how this new model works. It’s not surprising that Microsoft is moving to it as each year the conference keeps getting bigger. Based on the attendance from last year’s event, Microsoft is expecting about 5,000 developers and designers at TechEd Developers and 10,500 IT professionals at TechEd IT Professionals.